Tesco tells TV chef to pay £90,000 for welfare debate

Television cook Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall claims his campaign to highlight the plight of Britain's factory-farmed chickens is being blocked by Tesco.

Fearnley-Whittingstall, a passionate advocate of natural poultry-rearing techniques, had planned to force supermarket executives to face public criticism of the standards they set their suppliers at the company's annual meeting on 27 June.

The River Cottage smallholder bought a stake in Tesco last month and tabled a resolution, supported by 100 signatures. This challenges the company's claims about the welfare of the birds it sells and calls for the chain to improve the density and quality of the stocks they use.

But a letter from Tesco last week has demanded that he and his fellow campaigners meet the £90,000 cost of circulating the documents to all shareholders before the annual meeting. 'They are entitled to ask this, but it looks quite vindictive,' said Fearnley-Whittingstall, below, this weekend. 'There is a precedent for this requirement to be waived... but Tesco says it doesn't want to do this.' He has offered to pay £30,000 and is organising an online auction to raise cash. The resolution, if heard, will draw attention to Tesco's claim it supports animal welfare.

Tesco says it checks suppliers regularly and they meet Defra requirements. A spokesman said: 'We share Hugh's concerns and believe we have among the highest standards in the industry. We are happy to put the resolution that he has drawn up but we don't see why the cost should be borne by Tesco shareholders.'